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This test consists of 5 short answer questions, 10 short essay questions, and 1 (of 3) essay topics.

Short Answer Questions

1. In what area did the men live when they were stricken by their mysterious disease?

2. What kind of scientist was able to discover how to create a synthetic version of aspirin?

3. Who developed a vaccine for the rabies virus in the 1880s?

4. In what state was David Hoffman an insulation installer, according to the book?

5. The woman's ________ relationships among objects were almost impossible to judge correctly.

Short Essay Questions

1. What are some of the painful side effects of aspirin in some people who take it?

2. What ended up causing the contamination of the fruit at Tony's Market, leading to the illnesses?

3. How does a person contract anthrax if they come across it in the world?

4. Who were the people to become ill after eating lunch together, more ill than the ones with whom they dined?

5. Why was the attending doctor who saw Herman not alarmed by his condition when he arrived at the hospital?

6. What happened to the eleven elderly men in Manhattan which caused medical teams to become concerned about their condition?

7. What was the eventual diagnosis for the condition from which the woman suffered, even though it was never clear whether or not the diagnosis was correct?

8. Where does the worm that afflicted Vernon normally live before it seeks out a human host?

9. What are some of the ways that aspirin can help a patient who takes it, according to scientific research?

10. What were the symptoms that Herman Sauer was experiencing that led him to go to a New York hospital?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

When the men in the first case are stricken with a strange illness and turn blue, the fact they are poor might not have lead others to investigate too thoroughly.

Part 1: Do you think some people get better medical care than others?

Part 2: How would you react if you found out that a person got better medical care because they were rich?

Part 3: Why do you think certain people get better medical care than others?

Essay Topic 2

J.C. Penney refused to take the box of jeans that was damaged and later found out to be poisonous.

Part 1: Do you think J.C. Penney should have done more to prevent those jeans from being sold?

Part 2: What is a store's responsibility to the seller of a certain box of merchandise?

Part 3: Why do you think the delivery person who presented the box didn't think to return the box to the supplier?

Essay Topic 3

The woman who did not have anything wrong with her, but experienced vertigo was a medical mystery from start to finish, with no diagnosis.

Part 1: Why do you think the doctors couldn't find anything wrong with the professional woman?

Part 2: Do you think the woman might have been lying about her life and her symptoms?

Part 3: Describe a time when you had a symptom that you could not explain. What happened?

(see the answer keys)

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